How To Begin

The process is simple. Get situated to focus for an hour, grab your preferred writing instrument, and use the five steps described below, giving only 10 minutes to each. If you are with a group, either pair off or work independently before sharing.

1. Core Values

Start by listing what you value, jotting up to three independent ideals and any context for these values.

2. Future Vision

Keeping the values in mind, how do these key elements that matter inform what you want for the future? Is it different from today? If so, how? List no more than three sentences describing the business of the future.

3. SWOT Analysis

You're really hustling now — and that’s the point. If you’ve done a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis before, you’re probably wondering how to get that done in 10 minutes. Stop wondering and start answering. List two independent items for each category and don’t get bogged down with flim-flam concerns or notions that "might" be of issue. Select items that are concrete.

4. SMART Goals

With half the hour remaining, turn to goal setting using the truly tried SMART method: specific, measurable, ambitious, realistic and timely. Again, if it seems like a stretch, it is. Select up to three goals and be sure each can be assigned SMART status to each. If you can't, delete it. Concerned about the timeframe? Refer back to the future vision and work on incremental goals to get you there. Remember, you can always come back to this plan and that is the point.

5. Prioritize

Select one priority. I repeat, one priority. Many of us have the tendency to pluralize the word. I love what author Greg McKeown says in his book Essentialism, The Disciplined Pursuit of Less: “The word priority came into the English language in the 1400s. It was singular. It meant the very first or prior thing. It stayed singular for the next five hundred years.” Stop making priorities plural. Now.

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6. Accountability

You may not leave the room until you have set up accountability and follow through actions. Find an accountability partner with whom you’ll share the plan. Contact them now. Then, pull out your calendar and set a date to review it no more than 60 days into the future.

	Created by Tim Green over 3 years ago

The "plan on a page," strategy forces leaders to focus quickly and cast away their doubt in order to find a solution, to pen what is important to paper in an hour or less.